Araucana Reviews

The best!

Posted 2 weeks, 5 days ago

Pros: Look cool / feathers shine in the sun / food wise / child friendly

Cons: A "To die for" chicken

I have a black araucana. she is sooo CUTE!! They are very interested in things and dont squirm when you hold them. try to get a black one, their feathers shine in the sun green and purple! Wicked

Araucana

Posted 1/2/13

By gg706

Pros: Great Foragers, Very Friendly, Intelligence

Cons: Aquiring Chicks, Breed Issues

I bought my Araucanas as day old chicks. They were slow to mature, 10 months before attempting to lay. 2 of my hens egg bound attempting to lay their first egg and after 2 days I culled them. I am still waiting for my 3rd hen to lay. I am concerned she will not be able lay either, and I will end up having to cull her as well. I believe my problems with my hens is a line/breeder problem. Possibly too much inbreeding. I LOVE Araucana and will again have more...they are WONDERFUL birds and pets! Absolutely facinating! My advice to anyone seeking to own Araucana...be VERY careful WHO you purchase them from. Get them from someone here on BYC who...

(read more)

Very unique chickens!

Posted 3 weeks ago

By TheCrazyClucker

Pros: Good layers, eggs are medium-to-big in size, funky-looking.

Cons: Can have some hatching problems.

I have 3 of these hens. They are a very unique breed of chicken, rump-less, and have very large tufts. These chickens can have some hatching problems, due mostly to the fact that it is possible for the tufts to grow inside the chick, and the chick dies. My hens are good layers, giving me 3 or 4 sky-blue eggs a day. I love the fact that these chickens are rump-less, which makes watching them dust bathe hilarious!

A Unique, Challenging, Rewarding breed

Posted 4/8/13

By smoothmule

Pros: Unique, very people friendly, hardy, good layers in heat and cold, lovely blue to greenish colored eggs, great forager, dual purpose, great personalty

Cons: The lethal tuft gene that results in some productivity issues.

A challenging breed for the newcomer and even challenging for the advanced breeder when breeding towards the SOP but they more than make up for all of their difficulties by providing so much enjoyment and use. Breeding for the trademark tufts is not for everyone, especially those with tender hearts. The gene responsible for the tufts (which are not the same as muffs/beard in other breeds) is lethal when the chick get a gene from each parent (also called homozygous) and will die in the shell before hatching. There is, obviously, no way to tell which chicks will die in the shell as they generally continue to develop until just before hatching so there is no way to candle...

(read more)

A must-have chicken!

Posted 2/3/13

By Volkova

Pros: Flighty, Extremely hardy, Docile, Protective, Curious, Great egg colour, profilic layers

Cons: Eggs are not as large as I would like, little brooding instinct.

I have two British black and red tailed pullets last year. They came with 3 Orpingtons, which was the reason I was there, who they did not know each other to start with. I didn't really want them to start with and the Orpingtons were my favourites. After introducing the two breeds to each other and putting them into a new home together, they got on well despite my initial worries that the Araucanas being vicious and attacking them. How wrong was I?! Unfortunately, due to the complete change of environment and accidental smothering by the Rooster at night, only he survived. However, the two Araucanas were absolutely fine and I really started to bond with them. After getting...

(read more)

Love them!

Posted 1/23/13

By Rumbull

A very fascinating breed. When you live in the city and and can only have a few, why not make it an interesting breed like the araucana. Very friendly breed that lays a medium egg with a beautiful blue color. Very good foragers and light on feed consumption. I highly recommend them